June 16, 2009
What's Your Ideal International Job?
Is there a particular place you'd like to live? Is there some specific attribute that you'd like to experience - or share....
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Posted by mmorf at 11:18 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
May 10, 2009
Preparing Language Teachers for the 21st Century
"Designed for practitioners and researchers involved in the preparation and ongoing professional development of language teachers, LTE 2009 will address the education of teachers of all languages, at all instructional and institutional levels, and in many national and international contexts in which this takes place including: English as a Second or Foreign Language (ESL/EFL) instruction; foreign/modern/world language teaching; bilingual education; immersion education; indigenous and minority language education; and...
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Posted by mmorf at 09:28 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
February 27, 2009
British VS American English
Learning a new language is always a daunting challenge. The English language is difficult enough to learn even without the usual differences in accents and regional variations. And then there is the never clear, and always confusing set of differences between British and American….
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Posted by mmorf at 10:20 AM | Comments (7) | TrackBack (0)
February 18, 2009
Swimming with the Dolphins
In many resorts in warm climates, one of the options is to swim with the dolphins. This is sort of like running with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain - except much safer - and in water.
I mention it in relation to language learning because...
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Posted by mmorf at 02:31 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
February 13, 2009
Happy New Year!
All around the world we have just celebrated the coming of a new year. In the Chinese calender, we have just entered the year of the ox. This is a perfect metaphor for the language learning experience. The ox does its work slowly but steadily.
This is the time of year to reflect and look forward. Where have we been? And where are we....
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Posted by mmorf at 11:05 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
February 08, 2009
Twigglethicket
If you are learning English American-style, you are likely to run into words like this.
This particular word just came to me but....
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Posted by mmorf at 12:50 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
February 03, 2009
Voices From The Past - Abbot & Costello and Bono to Lincoln
All of us as learners of any language learn from those who came before us. We absorb words and ideas from every singer, writer, friend or neighbor we encounter.
So what can we learn from historical figures? From comedy teams to political leaders we can learn....
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Posted by mmorf at 10:51 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)
January 25, 2009
Finding Your Voice
Colleagues,
Most students of other languages lack confidence in public speaking of the new language. Shyness is a major barrier to making a language your own.
In essence, the main principle is practice, practice, practice.
But what is a safe and practical way to to do this?
Thanks to the internet there are . . .
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Posted by mmorf at 02:41 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack (0)
March 15, 2006
Name That Film Warm-Up
Hello again,
A great activity that I find useful for assessing language skills and student interaction, especially the first time a class meets, is to have students write the title of a film on a small sheet of paper or label. Students then exchange these in secret, unable to see the new title they have chosen. They then either affix the label to their shirt or hold the paper in front of them so that classmates can easily view the title, but it remains unknown to the student. Students must then try to guess the title of their film by asking questions to their classmates . . .
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Posted by ESL Lesson Plan at 08:38 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
December 23, 2005
Tips & Tricks - Troublesome Phrasal Verbs
Phrasal, Shmasal. Is this the reaction you get when you try to teach verb usage?
Hi all,
I've mentioned this probem on this forum once before but since I got such little feedback on it, I thought I'd bring it up for review once again.
Do your ESL students have a difficult time grasping the concept of phrasal verbs? If so, here’s a great exercise to get them past that “mind block.” I have found that my ESL students hate the idea when I propose it, but are always thankful afterwards because they finally “get it!” . . .
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Posted by msimmons at 10:02 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack (1)
November 24, 2005
Lesson Planning - Impromptu ESL Teaching Demonstrations
"It usually takes me three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech" ~Mark Twain
Hi friends,
Have you ever been asked to give an extemporaneous speech or to perform on the spot? How embarrassing is this if you don't feel prepared?
Presently, this is exactly what's happening in some ESL schools when job applicants are "invited" to an employment interview. Like the ESL students who are often asked to demonstrate their English language abilities (so that they can be properly placed), potential ESL teachers can also be expected to be held to a similar standard by demonstrating their teaching ability. Plus, if the ESL school has organized these interviews wisely, they could theoretically charge students for a pre-semester session of ESL classes while getting some free labor from their ESL instructor applicants (let's hope that schools aren't really doing this!) . . .
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Posted by lhobbs at 05:28 AM | Comments (7) | TrackBack (2)
November 14, 2005
Lesson Planning - Encouraging ESL Students to Talk
"Forgive your enemies, but never forget their names" ~ John F. Kennedy
Hello everyone,
Ever wonder what to do on the first day of class? Nervous about remembering new students' names? Well, the first day of class is the perfect opportunity to satisfy both of these apprehensions.
In the last newsletter (here), I offered one of the first-day-of-class lessons I like to use in the ESL classroom . . .
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Posted by lhobbs at 04:20 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (4)
November 06, 2005
Workplace Issues - ESL & PowerPoint Presentations
"Professors known as outstanding lecturers do two things; they use a simple plan and many examples." ~ W. McKeachie
Dear Readers,
If my memory doesn't fail me, it seems that the business types latched on to this technology first, the publishing field being no exception. The administrative branch of the school system used it to “preach” their new policies to the faculty branches.
When their use first became prevalent in teaching, I thought that they were the greatest thing since sliced bread. I still use them a lot, not only for course lectures but also for conference presentations, etc. If you suffer from stage-fright, it certainly gives your “audience” something to look at besides yourself! Even more importantly, as the quote suggests, they keep any “lecture” you feel compelled to impose upon your class "simple" by sticking to a planned outline and even entertaining with the ability to use graphics, examples and even “quotations” as writing prompts. I shouldn't even have to make a comparison to the expense or making (and trouble of making) overhead transparencies, the older method.
Apparently, students are now being prepped to . . .
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Posted by lhobbs at 02:39 AM | Comments (9) | TrackBack (2)
April 13, 2005
Tips & Tricks - Getting Shy Students To Speak!
Friends,
Have you ever had one of those classes when it seems that silence is the rule of the day? Or maybe you just have a class that is full of shy students, and some days you feel as if you are pulling teeth just to get them to speak!
You know how it goes:
"So, Josie, How was your day today?" "Fine." "Tell me what you did in the morning." "Ate breakfast." "Okay, how about this afternoon?" "Ate lunch." "Did you eat anything interesting?" "No."
See what I mean? Luckily, there are . . .
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Posted by msimmons at 01:30 AM | Comments (5) | TrackBack (1)
